Flemington Racecourse is a major

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

venue located in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

, Victoria,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. It is most notable for hosting the Melbourne Cup, which is the world's richest handicap and the world's richest 3200-metre horse race. The racecourse is situated on low alluvial flats, next to the Maribyrnong River. The area was first used for horse racing in March 1840.

Overview

Aerial panorama of Flemington Racecourse

The Flemington Racecourse site comprises 1.27 square kilometres of

Crown land Crown land (sometimes spelled crownland), also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it ...

. The course was originally leased to the Victoria Turf Club in 1848, which merged with the Victoria Jockey Club in 1864 to form the Victoria Racing Club. The first Melbourne Cup was run in 1861. In 1871 the Victoria Racing Club Act was passed, giving the VRC legal control over Flemington Racecourse. The racecourse is pear-shaped, and boasts a six-furlong (1,200 m) straight known as 'the Straight Six.' The track has a circumference of and a final straight of for race distances over . Races are run in an anti-clockwise direction. The course has a crowd capacity of over 120,000 and contains three grandstands. The biggest ever attendance was on Victoria Derby Day in 2006 when 129,069 people saw Efficient win the Victoria Derby.100,000 and more – but nobody's counting
On 28 November, 1986,

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

celebrated the Mass on the racetrack inner oval. The racecourse has undergone a facelift in recent years, with the opening of a new $45 million grandstand in 2000 and the opening of a new members' grandstand in 2018. It also contains a bronze statue of the famous racehorse Phar Lap, which was donated to the Club as part of Australia's bicentenary celebrations in 1988. Also in celebration was the commission of Harold Freedman's seven panel mural which traces the History of Racing. The mural is housed is in The Hill Stand, built in 1977. Flemington Racecourse was added to the Australian National Heritage List on 7 November 2006, announced during the 2006 Melbourne Cup. The site is listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. ...

. Flemington Racecourse today hosts many of Australia's top races, including the Melbourne Cup, Victoria Derby, VRC Oaks, Mackinnon Stakes, Newmarket Handicap, Australian Cup and Lightning Stakes.

Transport

The site has its own railway branch line, which operates on race days, bringing visitors to the adjacent

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

. Originally, it was serviced by Salt Water River station, before that was demolished in the 1860s and replaced with a station on the present site. Trains depart from platforms 8 and 9 at Flinders Street Station. The No. 57 tram from the City (Elizabeth and Flinders Streets) stops at the Epsom Road entrance. Car spaces for the disabled are available and taxi ranks are located adjacent to the main entrances. Shuttle buses run from Epsom Road to the main turnstiles of the racecourse. Lift access is available in the Prince of Wales Stand and to the first floor of the Members Stand.

Races

The following is a list of Group races which are run at Flemington Racecourse. All races in metres.Australian Group races

Key

* hcp - handicap * qlty - quality handicap * sw - set weights * sw+p - set weights with penalties * wfa - Weight for Age

Gallery

References

External links

Victoria Racing Club - official website
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Horse racing results at Flemington Racecourse
{{MelbourneRacing 1840 establishments in Australia Australian National Heritage List Horse racing venues in Australia Sports venues in Melbourne Heritage-listed buildings in Melbourne Tourist attractions in Melbourne Sports venues completed in 1840 Flemington, Victoria Sport in the City of Melbourne (LGA) Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA)